Toy apparatus including projectile projecting apparatus mounted in a screen for pivotal movement



' more a part of the scene.

United States Patent 3,495,828 TOY APPARATUS INCLUDING PROJECTILE PRO-JECTING APPARATUS MOUNTED IN A SCREEN FOR PIVOTAL MOVEMENT Godfrey I-I.Kymla, 2750 Yale 17, Anaheim, Calif.

92801, and Gary E. Reavis, 8592, Orange Ave,

Orange, Calif. 92667 Filed Sept. 1, 1967, Ser. No. 664,986

Int. Cl. A63b 65/12 US. Cl. 273-401 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSUREA toy apparatus including first and second target areascreen assemblieslocated in proximity to each other with each of the assemblies having ahorizontal sheet disposed to receive small targets, which sheets arelocated between vertical screens on the assemblies, which screens extendaround the edges of the horizontal sheets other than the edges of saidsheets immediately adjacent each other; said assemblies each having aprojecting apparatus mounted in the vertical screen, which projectileprojecting apparatus is removable in order to permit the horizontalsheet and the screens to be folded fiat for storage.

This invention relates to toy apparatus and more particularly to toyapparatus having a projectile project apparatus mounted in a screen forpivotal movement.

Briefly, the present invention relates to a game wherein targets, suchas for example, toy soldiers, are located in positions opposite to eachother. The game includes two assemblies each having a target areaadapted to receive the above mentioned targets. Also, each of theassemblies have a vertical primary screen in which is located aprojectile projecting apparatus. The primary vertical screen is ofsufiicient size that a person can crouch behind it and the major portionof his body would be obscured by the screen. The primary screen isfurther defined by a peephole through which the person can look, andthere is provided on the side of the screen facing the opponent, apictorial representation of an item such as, for example, a tank.Additionally, each assembly includes sidewall sec tions which extendfrom the primary screen section lat erally and forwardly for thepurposes of: providing support for the vertical screen which is hingedlymounted to the horizontal sheet; limiting the travel of projectileswhich have been fired by an opponent toward target areas in front of thescreen and sidewalls, i.e., acting as a backstop; and giving the game anadditional air of authenticity by battlefield scenery depicted on thesidewall sections.

Additionally, as will be explained, each of the assemblies areparticularly constructed such that they may be easily folded to a fiatcondition for'storage purposesthus affording considerable space savings.

Moreover, although it is contemplated that the assemblies will benormally used in pairs, at single device could be used. However, in suchcase, there would not be the advantage of the backstop effect of thesidewall sections since the projectiles would be projected away from thesidewalls. However, the person still would have the feeling of firing agun from, for example, a tank.

With the foregoing in mind, it is a major object of this invention toprovide a new, entertaining toy apparatus having a screen of sufficientsize that a person may crouch behind it and view through a peephole inthe screen at objects which he is shooting at in order to feel Anotherobject of this invention is to provide a lightweight t-oy apparatushaving a vertical screen and structure which is sufficiently large toobstruct the view of the ice bulk of a persons body crouched behind thescreen, and yet the apparatus can be easily folded into a flat, compactpackage for storage purposes.

A further object of this invention is to provide an improved toyapparatus having a screen with a barrel, through which projectiles areshot, mounted on a vertical screen, and having provision for loading aprojectile projecting device at a position behind the screen.

It is still another object of this invention to provide toy apparatusincluding a pair of target area-screen assemblies located in oppositionwith the target area of each assembly being located between the screensso that the screens will terminate the flight of the projectiles afterthey have passed through the target area.

It is still another object of this invention to provide an improved toyapparatus having substantial size when set up, and yet which can befolded into a flat, compact package for storage.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide a toyapparatus of relatively large size, and yet, the cost of manufacturingthe apparatus is very low.

A still further object of this invention is to provide toy apparatuswhich can be used in a wide variety of ways to entertain the user.

Other and further objects of this invention will become apparent in thedetailed description below in connection with the attached drawingswherein:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a pair of target areascreen assembliesincorporating the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a frontal view of one of the target areascreen assemblies inFIGURE 1, as seen from line 22 in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a frontal view of the other target areascreen assemblies inFIGURE 1, as seen from line 33 in FIG. 1;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged fragmentary partial cross sectional view of oneform of the projectile projecting apparatus of the present invention;

FIGURE 5 is a small view of one target area-screen assembly at aninitial step of folding the assembly to a storage position;

FIGURE 6 is a view of the assembly disclosed in FIGURE 5 at a point inthe folding process wherein the assembly is more near the storagecondition than in FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 7 is a view of the assembly shown in FIG- URE 5 at a point in thefolding process where the parts are more near the storage condition thanin FIGURE 6;

FIGURE 8 is a view of the assembly disclosed in FIG- URE 5 folded intothe storage condition; and

FIGURE 9 is an enlarged fragmentary cross sectional view, taken alongline 9-9 in FIGURE 1, disclosing details of the manner of joining thelower edge of the primary vertical screen with the rear edge of thehorizontal sheet.

Referring now to FIGURE 1, there is shown a first embodiment of thepresent invention. In this figure there are shown a first targetarea-screen assembly, indicated generally by the arrow 10, and a secondtarget areascreen assembly, indicated generally by the arrow 11. Thefirst assembly 10 includes a first target area, indicated generally bythe arrow 12, while the assembly 11 has a second target area, indicatedgenerally by the arrow 13 disposed immediately adjacent the first targetarea. On the sides of the target areas 12 and 13 located away from thecorresponding target area, there is provided screens having projectileprojecting apparatus, indicated generally by the arrows 14 and 15, whilea plurality of toy soldiers 16 are located in the second target area 13and a plurality of toy soldiers 17 are disposed in the first target area12.

In use, the screen sections located around the periphery of the targetareas, are of sufiicient sizes to stop projectiles which have passedthrough the respective target areas. Also, at the center portion of thescreenthe point at which the projectile projecting apparatus 14 and arelocated, the screen is of sufficient height that a person can crouchbehind the screen and view through the peephole in the screen.Accordingly, the invention will be described on the basis that thetarget areas of each respective assembly 10 or 11 is located in front ofthe screen, while the person is located behind the screen. Also, eachassembly 10 and 11 will be described with reference to the left side andright side as they would be viewed by a person crouching behind thecenter portion of the screen. It should be understood, however, that inthis specification and the appended claims, the use of words such asfront and rear are merely for establishing the relativity between theparts of the apparatus, and it is not intended that the invention belimited to the apparatus only when it is in a certain position.

In the first embodiment, it is preferred that the target area 12 belocated above a horizontal sheet. As mentioned above, and as will bedescribed in further detail below, the apparatus is of fairly large sizesince the apparatus must be of sufficiently large size to obstruct theview of the user. Therefore, it is important that special provision bemade in order that each assembly 10' and 11 may be folded into a smallcompact size. To this end, the above mentioned horizontal sheet has amain section of the predetermined width with a left section 21 (asviewed from the right in FIGURE 1) extending laterally to the left fromthe main section 20. The left section 21 is hingedly secured to the mainsection 20 by a hinge 22 Which is preferably a cloth hinge. The hingewill be described further below. The left section 21 is further definedby a diagonal edge 24 with side edge 25 extending parallel to the hinge22. At its right side, the main section 20 has a right section 26extending laterally from hinge 27 which joins the main section and theright section together. As in the case of the left section 21, the rightsection 26 is provided with a diagonal edge 28 extending from the inwardside of the right section to side edge 29 of said right section.

As mentioned previously, the person using the apparatus, or assembly,crouches behind a screen of the assembly and fires a projectileprojecting device which extends through the screen. Referring now toFIGURE 3, as well as FIGURE 1, the screen portion of the assembly 10will be described in further detail. Firstly, there is provided at therear edge of the main section 20, a primary vertical screen 33 extendingupwardly with an upstanding section 34 forming the upper part of theprimary vertical screen. The upstanding portion 34 is shaped and paintedas the turret of a German tank. This section 34 has a peephole 35therein through which a person can view. By way of example, the screen33 can be approximately 15 inches high to the bottom of the section 34,and the section 34 can be another 14 or 15 inches high. Additionally,the screen 33, and therefore the section 20, can be about 2 feet wide.Therefore, a person can crouch behind the screen with little, if any, ofhis body being viewable by a person at the operative position of theassembly 11.

Extending from the left side of the vertical screen 33 is a leftdiagonal wall section 37 joined to the screen by a hinge 38. Also, aleft side wall section 39 is joined to the left diagonal wall section 37by means of a hinge 40. On the right hand side of the primary screen 33,there is located a right diagonal wall section 42 joined to the screenby a hinge 43 and extending at about a 45 angle to the plane of theprimary screen as in the case of the left diagonal wall section 37.Similarly, as in the case of the left side wall section 39, there isprovided a right side wall section 45 joined to the right diagonal wallsection 42 by means of a hinge 46. These hinges will be described infurther detail below.

It will be noted that the wall sections 37, 39 and 42 and 45 provideseveral important functions. Firstly, these screens, which arepreferably about 15 inches high, are disposed around the target area 12so that any projectiles fired by the apparatus 15 and passing throughthe target area 12 Will be stopped by the screen formed by the abovementioned wall sections. Additionally, the Wall sections are high enoughso that they will obstruct the view of a person behind the screen.Thirdly, it can be seen that the wall section extend laterally andforwardly from the primary vertical screen 33, and therefore, thesesections provide a reliable support for the vertical screen.Additionally, there can be painted on the wall sections 37, 39, 42, and45, by way of example, battleground scenes which scenes will lend to theauthenticity of the game. The same is true as to paintings on thehorizontal sheet sections 20, 21, and 26.

Referring now to FIGURE 4, a preferred embodiment of the projectileprojecting apparatus will be described in detail. In the preferredembodiment, the sections 20, 21, and 26, as well as the screen 33 andthe wall sections 37, 39, 42, and 45 are made of cardboard as thismaterial is relatively inexpensive. Similarly, the upstanding section 34is made of cardboard. The section 34 is provided with a hole 48therethrough which has a reinforcing grommet 49 glued to the rear faceof the section and extending through the hole 48 to provide additionalsupport. Extending through the hole 48 is a barrel 51 having at its rearend 52 an annular radial flange 53 for a purpose to be described. Thefront end 54 of the barrel 51 extends forward of the upstanding section34 a substantial distance, and a passage, or bore, 55 extends axiallythe length of the barrel 51.

For reasons to be described, it is desired that the barrel 51 be easilyremoved from the assembly. There fore, a low cost connection of thebarrel to the section 34 is afforded by making the hole 48 sufilcientlylarger than the barrel 51 that the barrel can pivot about its rear end.Additionally, the flange 53 and a O-Iing 57 function to limit theforward and rearward movement of the barrel 51. Yet, the barrel 51 canbe quickly removed.

It is desired that during the time the game is being played, the barrel51 continues to extend out from the front of the screen 33, since thebarrel of a cannon on a tank always extends forward from the turret ofthe tank. And, as shown, the front side of the screen 33 and theupstanding section 34 are painted in the shape of a tank.

It is important to note that the apparatus 14 includes a projectileprojecting device 59 which is substantially similar to the spring-loadedpistol which shoots suctioncup darts. More particularly, the device 59includes a handle 60 with a trigger 61 near the junction of the handleand a barrel section 62 of the device. Within the device 59, there islocated an unnumbered spring which can be cocked by forcing a projectile65 rearWardly into the barrel section 62. Then, by pulling the trigger61, the projectile 65 is projected.

With this assembly, the barrel 51 is continuously extending from thefront of the primary screen 33. However, the device 59 can be loadedinside the turret by withdrawing the device from the barrel 51 andloading the projectile 65 into the device. Then, the barrel section 62is reinserted into the bore 55 of the barrel 51 sufliciently that thebarrel 51 can be pointed in the direction-that is desired to fire theprojectile 65. At that point, the operator will pull the trigger 61 andthe projectile 65 will exit the barrel. Since the device 59 isessentially a common springloaded pistol, the assembly 14 has a very lowcost. Additionally, at such times as it is desired, the device 59 can beused completely independently of the other apparatusthus affordingadditional, desirable flexibility.

As mentioned previously, the structure is rather large. Accordingly, itis very important that the structure can be folded into a compactpackage. Referring now to the FIGURES 5 to 8 the folding process will bedescribed in detail. Firstly, the barrel 51 must be removed from theupstanding section 34 in the manner described above. Then, the rightsection 26 is folded at the hinge 27 over onto the main section 20, andthe left section 21 is similarly folded at the hinge 22. See FIGURE 5.Then, the left side wall section 39 is folded at hinge 40 to a positionengaging the diagonal wall section 37, and both sections are folded athinge 38 to the position shown in FIGURE 6 laying against the screen 33.Additionally, the right side wall section 45 is folded at hinge 46 to aposition engaging the right diagonal wall section 42 as shown in FIGURE6. At that time, the wall sections 42 and 45 are folded at the hinge 43to the position shown in FIGURE 7, and the screen 33 with the wallsections are folded to the position shown in FIGURE 8. As can be seen,the unit forms a very compact package in the condition shown in FIGURE8.

In order to permit the structure to be folded as disclosed in theFIGURES to 8, hinges must be provided. Referring now to FIGURE 9, thehinges will be described in more detail with reference to one type ofhinge which could be used between lower edge 69 of the vertical screen33 and rear edge 70 of the section 20. More particularly, the hinge cantake the form of a cloth strip having an anchor section 72 on one sideof the strip and an anchor section 73 on the other side of the stripwith a flexible intermediate portion 74 therebetween. The anchorsections 72 and 73 are secured to the respective edges 69 and 70. Itwill be noted that the intermediate portion, or section, has aconsiderable width. This is because, as can be seen in FIGURE 8, thehinge thus formed must be wide enough to accommodaate the fact thatinthe storage position-there are six layers of cardboard between thesection 20 and the screen 33. The hinges 2'2, 27, 38, 40, 43, and 46 canbe similarly formed by a flexible cloth tape. However, naturally, onlythe hinges 43 and 38 need have extra length in the intermediate sectionof the hinge material.

Referring back to FIGURES 1 and 2, the assembly 11 is substantially thesame as the assembly except that the screen section is shaped as anAmerican tank as Will be described. The assembly 11 has a horizontalsheet made up of a main section 80 with a left section 81 and rightsection 82 joined to the main section by hinges 83 and 84. As in thecase of the assembly 10, the left section 81 has a left diagonal edge 85and a left side edge 86 while the right section 82 has a right diagonaledge 87 and a right side edge 88.

The same as the screen, or wall section, in the assembly 10, theassembly 11 is provided with a primary vertical screen 90 having anupstanding portion 91 thereon. In this case, the upstanding portion 91is shaped like an American tank to correspond with the picture depictedon the remaining portion of the front of the screen 90. The upstandingportion 91, i.e., the turret portion, has a peephole 92 therethroughthrough which a person can view, and additionally, the projectileprojecting apparatus extends through a hole in the section 91. Theprojectile projecting apparatus 15 is substantially the same as theapparatus 14 as is the manner of mounting the barrel of the apparatus15. Therefore, these items will not be shown in detail.

As in the case of the assembly 10, it is preferred that wall, or screenmeans, extend from either side of the screen 90 to form a backstop tostop projectiles coming from the apparatus 14. To this end, there is aleft diagonal wall section 94 joined to the screen 90 by a hinge 95 andextending along the diagonal edge 85 to a position where the wallsection is joined to a left side Wall section 96 by a hinge 97.Similarly, a right diagonal wall section 99 is joined to the right sideof the screen 90 by a hinge 100 and extends along the edge 87 to a pointwhere it joins with right side wall section 101 by means of a hinge 102.The horizontal sheet sections, and the Wall sections, and the hinges arethe same as in the assembly 6 10 in order that the assembly 11 can befolded as the assembly 10. Therefore, these items will not be describedin detail.

Although, only a few embodiments of the present invention have beenshown and described in detail, it will be apparent to those skilled inthe art that such is by way of illustration only and numerous changesmay be made thereto without departing from the spirit of the presentinvention.

We claim:

1. Toy apparatus comprising:

a vertical primary screen of sufficient height and width that it willobscure the view of the bulk of a person crouched behind the screen;

a target area disposed in front of said screen arranged to receivetargets;

and a projectile projecting apparatus pivotally mounted on said screen,said projecting apparatus including:

an elongated barrel having an axial opening through which projectilesmay pass, said barrel being pivotally mounted to said screen andextending from said screen toward said target area a substantialdistance;

and a projectile projecting device, said projectile projecting devicebeing removably received at least part way into said barrel.

2. The invention set forth in claim 1 wherein:

there is printing on the target area side of said screen depicting aturret from which said barrel extends like a cannon mounted within saidturret.

3. The invention set forth in claim 1 wherein:

said screen has a predetermined width;

a horizontal sheet in front of said screen on which there is located atarget area, said horizontal sheet has a main section having a rear edgeof a length equal to the width of said screen and joined to the bottomedge of the screen and having left and right sections, said left andright sections each being joined to said main section along an edge ofthe main section extending at substantially a right angle to said rearedge of said main section, said left and right sections each extendinglaterally from the edge at which each is joined with said main sectionand terminating in a laterally disposed side edge portion;

hinge means joining said left and right sections with said main sectionfor permitting each ,of said side sections to be folded over on top ofsaid main section;

and backstop screen means extending generally along the side edges ofsaid left and right sections, said backstop screen means upstanding fromleft and right sections a substantial distance so as to stop projectileshitting the backstop screen means from a direction in front of thetarget area;

and a plurality of targets movably positioned on said target area onsaid horizontal sheet.

4. The invention set forth in claim 1 including:

a first horizontal sheet hingedly secured to a bottom edge of saidvertical screen;

a second vertical primary screen;

a second horizontal sheet hingedly secured to a bottom edge of saidsecond vertical screen;

front edges on the front of each of said horizontal sheets being locatedin proximity to each other such that the sheets are located between thevertical screens;

a plurality of first targets movably positioned on said first horizontalsheet;

a plurality of second targets movably positioned on said secondhorizontal sheet;

a projectile projection device pivotally secured to said second verticalscreen for projecting projectiles at said first targets located on saidfirst horizontal sheet.

7 s 5. The invention set forth in claim4wher ein: distance below theupper edge of the screen which subeach of said horizontal sheets has amain section eX- stantial distance is several times greater than theheight tending the width of the associated vertical primary of theopening, said opening being only a small fraction screen, each said mainsection being hingedly seof the width of the primary screen. cured at arear edge to said vertical screen and 5 having left and right edgesextending at a right References Cited angle to the edge where said mainsection and said UNITED STATES PATENTS vertical screen join;

left and right side sections hingedly secured to said ii gg l 3?? mainsection along said left and right side edges 10 g 2/ 9 00 say a 2respectively 2s 03 ,1962 Hayter 273- 9 6. The invention set forth inclaim 1 wherein said .7

primary vertical screen has an upstanding section and FORELGN PATENTS;aid projectile projecting apparatus is pivotally mounted 291,442 3/1915y- )n said upstanding section, and said upstanding section 15 nastherethrough an opening located at a position just ANTON OECHsLbPnmaryExammer ibove the position at which said projectile projecting R AGAssistant E i apparatus is located, said opening being adapted to pernita person located behind the screen to view targets US. Cl. X.R.

in front of the screen, said opening extending only a 20 124-29 smalldistance upward and terminating a substantial

